Mia's POV

The silence stretched between us like a chasm, and in that moment, I understood everything I needed to know about where I stood with them.

Still not worth the full truth. Still not trusted with the complete story. After everything I've been through, after all the pain and sacrifice, I'm still just a liability to them. They look at me and see someone who needs to be protected from reality, someone too weak to handle the truth.

"Get out," I said quietly, my voice hollow with ...